Animal Welfare

Lord Grantchester: To ask Her Majesty's Government, in the light of the appearance of new animal diseases in the United Kingdom, whether they will ensure that under Project Surveillance 2014 the Animal Health Veterinary Laboratory Agency will assess the usefulness of new tests with a view both to quality and to value for money; and what steps they are taking to work with vets and incineration centres to ensure the long-term viability of agricultural production and the welfare of animals.

Lord De Mauley: The AHVLA has a programme of test development and validation, and Surveillance 2014 would not be expected to change this. Commercially available tests are used extensively when they meet AHVLA's standards for cost and quality. Most of AHVLA's testing meets the IS017025 quality standard. This is externally audited by UKAS.
	AHVLA works extensively with veterinary surgeons in private practice to detect notifiable diseases and to identify new or re-emerging animal-related threats, which may jeopardise the long-term viability of animal production or welfare. Control of animal disease and other threats are an important part of making agricultural production viable in the UK and improving animal welfare. AHVLA is also in discussion with fallen stock collectors to enhance their contribution to disease surveillance activity.

Armed Forces: Atomic Test Veterans

Lord Kinnock: To ask Her Majesty's Government whether they have plans to give specific recognition to British veterans of nuclear weapons tests in the Pacific in the 1950s and 1960s.
	To ask Her Majesty's Government whether compensation will be paid to British veterans of nuclear weapons tests in the Pacific in the 1950s and 1960s.

Lord Astor of Hever: Compensation in the form of a war pension, under the War Pensions Scheme, is available to all former members of HM Armed Forces who suffer disablement which is attributable to service prior to 6 April 2005 including nuclear test veterans. The scheme also makes provision for the widows and widowers of service and ex-service personnel whose death is attributable to service in the form of a war widows', or widowers' pension.
	The Ministry of Defence has no plans to pay common law compensation. On 14 March 2012, the Supreme Court ruled in favour of Ministry of Defence on all lead cases that claims by nuclear test veterans were time-barred, and further declined to allow the claims to proceed under the statutory discretion. In handing down judgment, all seven justices recognised that the veterans would face great difficulty proving a causal link between illnesses suffered and attendance at the tests.
	An independent review of the rules governing the award of military medals is being conducted by Sir John Holmes. Sir John's interim report was published in July and found the overall approach of the rules and principles governing the award of military medals to be reasonably based. However, he did identify areas where it may be worth considering whether the rules could be applied with greater flexibility and transparency and suggested that further work be undertaken to take a fresh look at some of the main medal controversies of the past. This work is not yet complete.

Armed Forces: Careers and Training

Lord Hoyle: To ask Her Majesty's Government how much has been invested in Armed Forces careers and training in (1) the British Army, (2) the Royal Navy, and (3) the Royal Air Force.

Lord Astor of Hever: The information requested is not held in the specific format requested.

Armed Forces: Medical Reservists

Baroness Finlay of Llandaff: To ask Her Majesty's Government whether they have consulted the medical colleges, speciality training committees and the General Medical Council about the recognition of time and experience in active service in speciality training and in revalidation of medical reservists.

Earl Howe: The recognition of time and experience in active service is a matter for the General Medical Council (GMC). Currently, the time that military trainees spend in general military duties between foundation and entering specialty training is not part of an approved for training programme. The GMC is in discussion with the military about how this experience can be recognised when trainees apply for specialty posts.
	Revalidation is based on a continuing evaluation of a doctor's performance in the workplace, through regular annual appraisal that takes into account the whole of a doctor's practice. This will include the experience reservists accrue when on deployment. Doctors in training will revalidate through participation in their training programme and military trainees can have time on active service approved for training.
	In March 2010, the GMC launched its consultation document, Revalidation: The Way Ahead. Details of the consultation were sent to several thousand organisations and this was supported by an extensive communication and engagement programme. The GMC took part in over 130 events during the three-month consultation period, including events with the medical royal colleges and an event held by the BMA Armed Forces Committee.

Banks: Money Laundering

Lord Myners: To ask Her Majesty's Government what investigations are being carried out by HM Revenue and Customs into the role of HSBC in money laundering and tax evasion though Jersey; what period will be covered by the investigations; and whether the Financial Services Agency is investigating whether the bank was under fit and proper leadership at the relevant time.

Lord Sassoon: HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) has confirmed that it recently received details of around 4,000 HSBC account holders in Jersey. It is currently analysing this data and will take appropriate action as a result.
	HMRC receives information from a wide range of sources, which it uses to ensure the tax rules are being respected. Clamping down on those who try to cheat the system through evading taxes is a top priority for HMRC, which values the information it receives from the public and business community. HMRC will maintain contacts with other UK enforcement agencies as its work on this matter develops, including the UK Financial Services Authority. HMRC will also maintain necessary contact with the Solicitor-General of Jersey.
	The Financial Services Authority (FSA) is the regulator for financial institutions in the UK. HSBC's operations in Jersey are not incorporated or authorised in the UK and are subject to regulation by the Jersey Financial Services Commission. The FSA maintains regular dialogue with other financial services regulators including the Jersey Financial Services Commission as part of its supervision of HSBC entities in the UK.

Carbon Monoxide Poisoning

Lord Harrison: To ask Her Majesty's Government what consideration they have given to a programme of fitting free carbon monoxide alarms in homes, and in particular to the economic consequences of such a programme.

Baroness Hanham: The Government consider that carbon monoxide alarms can make a significant difference to safety in homes. However, they should not be regarded as a replacement for regular maintenance or adequate ventilation.
	Research carried out in 2010 concluded it would be disproportionate to require carbon monoxide alarms in all new homes. However, solid fuel appliances are responsible for more carbon monoxide deaths and injuries compared to other combustion appliances. This is why building regulations were amended in October 2010 to require the provision of alarms for dwellings with solid fuel appliances.
	The Gas Safety (Installation and Use) Regulations also require landlords to obtain an annual gas safety certificate from a registered gas installer. This already ensures a high standard of safety for gas appliances in rented accommodation.

Channel Tunnel

Lord Bradshaw: To ask Her Majesty's Government how many freight trains have passed through the Channel Tunnel in each direction in each of the last ten years.

Earl Attlee: The Department for Transport does not hold this information in the form requested. However, Eurotunnel publishes traffic figures on its website covering the past seven years' operations. These figures are available at http://www.eurotunnelgroup.com/uk/eurotunnel-group/operations/traffic-figures/ and include the total number of freight trains that operated through the Tunnel in each of the seven years concerned.

Charities: Religious Charities

Baroness Berridge: To ask Her Majesty's Government how many churches were registered as charities with the Charity Commission in April 2012.
	To ask Her Majesty's Government how many religious places of worship other than churches were registered with the Charity Commission in April 2012.

Lord Wallace of Saltaire: The information requested falls within the responsibility of the Charity Commission. I have asked the Commission's chief executive to reply.
	Letter from Sam Younger BCE, Chief Executive, Charity Commission, to Baroness Berridge, dated 21 November 2012.
	I have been asked to reply to your Parliamentary Questions on how many churches were registered as charities with the Charity Commission in April 2012 [HL3568] and how many religious places of worship other than churches were registered with the Charity Commission in April 2012 [HL3569].
	Our records indicate that 39 churches and five places of worship other than churches were registered in April 2012.
	These figures are estimates based on a manual search of entries on the register of charities. It is not always possible to identify from the details a charity has given for its register entry whether or not it operates a church or other place of worship. In addition, new charities may not currently operate a church or place of worship but may plan to do so in the future.

Child Protection

Lord Taylor of Warwick: To ask Her Majesty's Government what changes, if any, they have made to guidance regarding the threshold for social services intervening to protect underprivileged children.

Lord Hill of Oareford: This Government have no current plans to change the legislation which governs the thresholds for intervening to protect vulnerable children. Section 17 of the Children Act 1989 defines a child as being "in need" if they are unlikely to reach or maintain a satisfactory level of health and development, or their health and development will be impaired, without additional services or they are a disabled child. Section 47 puts a duty on local authorities to make enquiries to decide whether and what action should be taken to safeguard the child from significant harm. It is for each local area to interpret the definitions at Sections 17 and 47 and set local thresholds. These are agreed by local safeguarding children boards (LSCBs), through their statutory function under the Children Act 2004 and in discussion with all local partners.
	The recent consultation on revisions to statutory safeguarding guidance, Working Together to Safeguard Children and Managing Individual Cases: the Framework for the Assessment of Children in Need and their Families makes clear the legislation regarding the action that social workers and others need to take for children in need and for children suffering or likely to suffer significant harm.

Child Protection

Baroness Smith of Basildon: To ask Her Majesty's Government what were the staffing levels, broken down by rank and specialism, of the Child Exploitation and Online Protection Centre in each of the past five years; what is the current staffing level; and what are the projected staff levels for the next three years.

Lord Taylor of Holbeach: The following tables give a breakdown of the Child Exploitation and Online Protection Centre's (CEOP) staffing levels, broken down by grade. These totals include all types of staff i.e. permanent, contractors, agency, secondments, attachments and fixed-term contracts. It is not possible to break these numbers down into specific specialisms. However, specialisms covered include: victim identification, investigations, behavioural analysts, covert internet investigators, data and forensics, child protection specialists, and, specialist advice on complex child abuse cases.
	As of end of October 2012 the staffing level was 114.
	Projected staffing levels for the next three years are yet to be finalised.
	
		
			 31 March 2007 Headcount 
			 Grade Employee Number 
			 SOCA Deputy Director 1 
			 SOCA Grade 1 3 
			 SOCA Grade 2 2 
			 SOCA Grade 3 6 
			 SOCA Grade 4 16 
			 SOCA Grade 5 21 
			 SOCA Grade 6 10 
			 SOCA Unassigned grades 1 
			 Grand Total 60 
		
	
	
		
			 31 March 2008 Headcount 
			 Post Grade Employee Number 
			 SOCA Deputy Director 1 
			 SOCA Grade 1 5 
			 SOCA Grade 2 6 
			 SOCA Grade 3 9 
			 SOCA Grade 4 21 
			 SOCA Grade 5 26 
			 SOCA Grade 6 20 
			 SOCA Unassigned grades 1 
			 Grand Total 89 
		
	
	
		
			 31 March 2009 Headcount 
			 Post Grade Employee Number 
			 SOCA Deputy Director 1 
			 SOCA Grade 1 5 
			 SOCA Grade 2 8 
			 SOCA Grade 3 9 
			 SOCA Grade 4 25 
			 SOCA Grade 5 30 
			 SOCA Grade 6 21 
			 SOCA Unassigned grades 1 
			 Grand Total 100 
		
	
	
		
			 31 March 2010 Headcount 
			 Post Grade Employee Number 
			 SOCA Deputy Director 1 
			 SOCA Grade 1 8 
			 SOCA Grade 2 6 
			 SOCA Grade 3 9 
			 SOCA Grade 4 30 
			 SOCA Grade 5 35 
			 SOCA Grade 6 24 
			 Grand Total 113 
		
	
	
		
			 31 March 2011 Headcount 
			 Post Grade Employee Number 
			 SOCA Deputy Director 2 
			 SOCA Grade 1 5 
			 SOCA Grade 2 5 
			 SOCA Grade 3 7 
			 SOCA Grade 4 26 
			 SOCA Grade 5 40 
			 SOCA Grade 6 11 
			 Grand Total 96 
		
	
	
		
			 31 March 2012 Headcount 
			 Post Grade Employee Number 
			 SOCA Deputy Director 2 
			 SOCA Grade 1 3 
			 SOCA Grade 2 6 
			 SOCA Grade 3 12 
			 SOCA Grade 4 24 
			 SOCA Grade 5 46 
			 SOCA Grade 6 6 
			 Grand Total 99

Child Protection

Lord Dykes: To ask Her Majesty's Government whether they have any plans to introduce legislation to improve child protection.

Lord Hill of Oareford: We believe that there is sufficient legislation in place to ensure that children are protected and free from harm. The Children Act 1989 introduced a duty for local authorities to safeguard and promote the welfare of children within their area who are in need. Local authorities have a duty to make enquiries to decide whether and what action should be taken to safeguard the child from significant harm (Section 47). They are also required to provide services if a child is "in need" and they are unlikely to reach or maintain a satisfactory level of health and development or their health and development will be impaired, without the need for additional services or they are a disabled child (Section 17).
	We are revising the statutory safeguarding guidance, Working Together to Safeguard Children and Managing Individual Cases: the Framework for the Assessment of Children in Need and their Families to clarify the legislative requirements, so that all organisations know what the law says they and others must do; to provide the essentials that will enable and encourage good cross-agency working-so all organisations understand what they should do to provide a coordinated approach to safeguarding; and to reduce central prescription to give local areas more freedom to determine how assessments are carried out. The underpinning legislative framework will remain the same.

Drones

Lord Stoddart of Swindon: To ask Her Majesty's Government whether United Kingdom-owned drones have operated in the air space of countries other than Afghanistan; and, if so, for what purposes.

Lord Astor of Hever: Her Majesty's Government do not use armed remotely piloted air systems against terrorist suspects outside Afghanistan.

Education: English Baccalaureate

Lord Wills: To ask Her Majesty's Government what is their policy on providing certificates for those awarded the English Baccalaureate.
	To ask Her Majesty's Government what consideration they have given to which body should be responsible for awarding the English Baccalaureate.
	To ask Her Majesty's Government what estimate they have made of the costs of providing certificates for those awarded the English Baccalaureate.
	To ask Her Majesty's Government what consideration they have given to awarding different grades for the English Baccalaureate.

Lord Hill of Oareford: The English baccalaureate is a performance measure, not a qualification in itself. It recognises students' achievements in getting good passes in rigorous GCSEs, accredited and approved versions of established GCSEs (and AS levels taken before KS4) in a core of academic subjects. There are no plans to certificate achievement of the English baccalaureate at present. Neither are there plans to award grades for the English baccalaureate, given that it is a performance measure, rather than a qualification.
	The subjects chosen for the new English baccalaureate certificate (EBCs) qualifications, which the Government are currently consulting on, are those core academic subjects-English, mathematics, the sciences, history, geography and languages-that keep open pupils' options for further study. We intend to replace the current GCSEs with these new qualifications. When they are introduced, we propose that only the single qualification chosen for each subject should count towards achievement of the English baccalaureate measure and other key performance measures.
	The consultation on reforming key stage 4 qualifications runs to 10 December and seeks views on arrangements for grading in the new qualifications, including whether they should have a common grading structure. The Government will review responses to the consultation before making final decisions. The regulations which Ofqual will be developing and on which it will consult will also cover assessment characteristics of the new qualifications.

Education: Special Educational Needs and Disability

Baroness Hughes of Stretford: To ask Her Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answer by Lord Hill of Oareford on 14 June (WA 271-2), why the assurance that the new draft Special Educational Needs Code of Practice would be laid before both Houses of Parliament for approval is not reflected in the SEN and disability provisions of the draft Children and Families Bill.

Lord Hill of Oareford: My previous answer concerned the position under the current legislation in the Education Act 1996. The present code of practice is over 10 years old and the current approval arrangements have made it difficult to keep the Special Educational Needs (SEN) Code of Practice up to date. The draft provisions do not include a clause that requires the code of practice to be laid before both Houses of Parliament for approval to ensure the code can be kept up to date in future.
	Officials are currently consulting representatives of the SEN and disability sectors and wider groups on the information to be included in the draft code. The Government expect to be able to provide an indicative draft of the new code of practice to support parliamentary scrutiny during the passage of the legislation. We will also be consulting publicly on the new code before it is published.

Embryology

Lord Alton of Liverpool: To ask Her Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answer by Lord Drayson on 4 November 2009 (WA 60), how many independent groups were invited by the Medical Research Council (MRC) to submit research proposals investigating women's experiences upon receipt of financial inducement to provide eggs for research; how many of those independent groups had published papers within the preceding five years that were co-authored by Professor Murdoch and Dr Herbert at the University of Newcastle; how many of those independent groups had not done so; and how the funding available for the social science study was advertised more widely to potential applicants outside the University of Newcastle.

Lord Marland: The MRC-funded social science study, An investigation of the experiences of potential in vitro fertilisation donors in egg sharing for SCNT, was commissioned by the MRC to learn from women's experiences in relation to the separately blinded and separately managed research project and to inform future research involving egg donation and payment of IVF treatment costs.
	The MRC commissioned this research directly from Professor Haimes' group, as acknowledged experts in this area of social science. This research was commissioned, and not advertised as an open call, because of the requirement to work closely with Professor Herbert's study, Improving the efficiency of human somatic cell nuclear transfer, and to be established alongside the main study. The social science study was subject to peer review and assurances were obtained by the MRC to ensure that this study would be sufficiently independent of the main research study before a funding decision was taken.

Embryology

Lord Alton of Liverpool: To ask Her Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answer by Baroness Wilcox on 31 January 2011 (WA 219-20) regarding international collaboration to overcome difficulties with research into somatic cell nuclear transfer, what steps were taken by the Medical Research Council (MRC) and the California Institute for Regenerative Medicine to enable Professor Diane Beeson of California State University East Bay and Professor Tina Stevens of San Francisco State University to attend the session regarding procurement of human oocytes at their joint workshop convened in San Francisco in June 2010 following an initial refusal to admit them.

Lord Marland: In June 2010 the Medical Research Council (MRC) and the California Institute for Regenerative Medicine (CIRM) held a workshop in San Francisco to examine somatic cell nuclear transfer (SCNT) and its role in stem cell research, summarising the state of the global research effort in this area. The workshop brought together many of the preeminent researchers in the field of SCNT to discuss whether SCNT is achievable in humans, what challenges exist, and whether human SCNT offers any scientific or medical advantages over other methods of cellular reprogramming.
	The workshop was organised by CIRM and was not open to the public. The MRC has consulted with CIRM on this question and understands that two individuals, who were not invited workshop participants, came to the meeting venue and asked to be admitted. They spoke to a CIRM employee, and expressed interest in a session on procurement of human oocytes, a session that had concluded before they arrived. The CIRM employee offered to find one of the CIRM meeting organisers, to find out whether the two additional individuals could participate in the remainder of the workshop, and asked for their names and areas of interest. They declined to give their names, and left.

Embryology

Lord Alton of Liverpool: To ask Her Majesty's Government under what circumstances they propose that human embryos can be used in research when similar results could be reasonably expected at the same time through the use of non-human embryos.

Earl Howe: The Human Fertilisation and Embryology Act 1990 (as amended) provides that the Human Fertilisation and Embryology Authority shall not grant a licence for research using a human embryo unless the research is necessary or desirable and the authority is satisfied that any proposed use of human embryos is necessary for the purposes of the research.

Finance: Lending

Lord Edmiston: To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of access to finance and loans for people in employment on zero-hour contracts in the light of Financial Services Authority requirements for responsible lending.

Lord Sassoon: The Financial Services Authority (FSA) regulates the majority of secured lending to consumers.
	The day-to-day operations of the FSA, including its requirements for responsible lending, are independent from Government control. The FSA is required to undertake a detailed cost-benefit analysis on changes it makes to its rules, which includes the impact on consumers. These are publicly available on the FSA's website.

Gary Glitter

Lord Jopling: To ask Her Majesty's Government whether they have launched investigations into why there was a media presence when police arrested Gary Glitter on Sunday 25 October.

Lord Taylor of Holbeach: The Government have not launched any investigations. Anyone with a complaint against the police should contact the police force concerned or the Independent Police Complaints Commission.

Government Departments: Coalition Agreement

Lord Ryder of Wensum: To ask Her Majesty's Government what progress the Northern Ireland Office has made since May 2010 in respect of commitments relevant to it in the coalition agreement.

Baroness Randerson: As outlined in the coalition agreement, the Northern Ireland Office and the Government continue to promote peace, stability and economic prosperity in Northern Ireland, standing behind the agreements and the institutions established by them.
	A Government paper examining potential mechanisms for changing the corporation tax rate in Northern Ireland was published in March 2011 and further work in this area has been carried out by a Joint Ministerial Working Group comprising Ministers from the Government and the Northern Ireland Executive.

Government Departments: Coalition Agreement

Lord Ryder of Wensum: To ask Her Majesty's Government what progress HM Treasury has made since May 2010 in respect of commitments relevant to it in the coalition agreement.

Lord Sassoon: Structural reform plans detail the concrete steps this Government are taking to implement their agenda.
	Information on progress can be found in a Written Ministerial Statement (dated 31 May 2012)1 published on 11 June 2012, which provides an update on actions as of May 2012 and the live display of the 2012-13 business plans on the structural reform plan section of the No. 10 website.
	HM Treasury's latest update on progress in delivering the coalition agreement commitments in its 2012-15 business plan is available on the Number 10 website2. To date, over 85% of the Treasury's actions are in progress or have been completed.
	1 http://www.publications.parliament.uk/pa/cm201213/cmhansrd /cm120611/wmstext/120611m0001.htm
	2 http://transparency.number10.gov.uk/business-plan/8

Government Departments: Coalition Agreement

Lord Ryder of Wensum: To ask Her Majesty's Government what progress the Wales Office has made since May 2010 in respect of commitments relevant to it in the coalition agreement.

Baroness Randerson: The Programme for Government contains three commitments that relate directly to Wales: introduce a referendum on further Welsh devolution, establish a process similar to the Calman Commission for the Welsh Assembly and take forward the Sustainable Homes Legislative Competence Order. All three have been delivered.

Government Departments: Coalition Agreement

Lord Ryder of Wensum: To ask Her Majesty's Government what progress the Department for Work and Pensions has made since May 2010 in respect of commitments relevant to it in the coalition agreement.

Lord Freud: Progress towards coalition priorities is outlined in the DWP business plan: http://www.dwp.gov.uk/docs/dwp-business- plan-2011-2015.pdf.

Government Departments: Staff

Lord Laird: To ask Her Majesty's Government what surveys of staff employed by HM Treasury are conducted; at what cost; at what time of year; and whether they will place in the Library of the House the results of each such survey held in each of the past five years.

Lord Sassoon: HM Treasury conducts an annual people survey as part of a Civil Service wide survey co-ordinated by the Cabinet Office.
	The survey for 2012 was conducted between 1 October 2012 and 31 October 2012 and the estimated cost of the survey was £11,217.
	All departments must publish their results externally by 31 January 2013, in line with the timescale determined by the Cabinet Office. The results will then be available to place in the Library of the House.
	The results from Treasury surveys conducted since 2005 are available on the Treasury website: http://www.hm- treasury.gov.uk/about_staff_surveys.htm.
	The Treasury will send the results for 2007 to 2011 to the Library of the House.

Government Departments: Staff

Lord Laird: To ask Her Majesty's Government what surveys of staff employed by HM Revenue and Customs are conducted; at what cost; at what time of year; and whether they will place in the Library of the House the results of each such survey held in each of the past five years.

Lord Sassoon: HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) conducts an annual people survey which is part of the Civil Service-wide survey, co-ordinated by the Cabinet Office.
	Each employee within HMRC is invited to take part by completing an online questionnaire which seeks their views on how they feel about working for HMRC through a series of questions.
	The 2012 people survey opened on 1 October 2012 and closed on 31 October 2012.
	All departments must publish their results externally by 31 January 2013, in line with the timescale determined by the Cabinet Office. The results will be available to place in the Library of the House. Results from previous years' surveys are published on the HMRC website1.
	The estimated cost of the 2012 people survey is £54,000 which is comparable with previous year's and equates to less than £1 per HMRC employee.
	In addition to the annual people survey, HMRC also runs a pulse survey four times a year. This survey only takes a sample (under 20%) of HMRC employees, to monitor trends and progress during the year. This is managed internally so there is no direct external supplier or publishing costs associated with the pulse survey. The latest HMRC pulse survey took place in July 2012 and the results were made available, internally within the department, in August 2012.
	A range of other ad hoc surveys take place within HMRC during any one year. However, these involve only small pools or segments of employees within HMRC and are not organisation wide. These surveys are managed locally by individual business teams, often using freely available software such as Survey Monkey.
	1 http://www.hmrc.gov.uk/research/staffsurvey.htm

Government: Special Advisers

Lord Foulkes of Cumnock: To ask Her Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answer by Lord Gardiner of Kimble on 8 November (WA 232), which specific responsibilities are allocated to each of the special advisers, and how each relates to the ministerial duties and cabinet committee responsibilities of the Deputy Prime Minister.

Lord Wallace of Saltaire: The published list of special advisers in post as at 19 October details those advisers who work in the Deputy Prime Minister's office and those with relevant responsibilities in relation to other departments, including No. 10.
	All special advisers work in accordance with the requirements of the Code of Conduct for Special Advisers which includes a description of their duties and responsibilities.

Health: Cancer

Baroness Masham of Ilton: To ask Her Majesty's Government, in the light of their commitment to reduce inequality in the draft Mandate to the NHS Commissioning Board, whether they have any plans to ensure that all children diagnosed with neuroblastoma are able to access primary care trust funding to have treatment in Germany.

Earl Howe: The treatment of children with neuroblastoma depends on the age of the child, the size and position of the tumour, and whether it has spread. Treatment includes chemotherapy to shrink the tumour and target cells that have spread, surgery to remove as much of the neuroblastoma as possible, a stem cell transplant and radiotherapy.
	There is agreement among neuroblastoma specialists that children should be offered the opportunity to participate in a clinical trial investigating the efficacy of monoclonal antibody treatment that may prevent recurrence.
	Most United Kingdom patients already have access to this treatment through the Cancer Research UK-supported European trial, which is being led in the UK by Dr Penelope Brock from Great Ormond Street Hospital as part of the UK Children's Cancer and Leukaemia Group.
	In early 2010, it became clear that five or six patients per year would not meet the strict criteria for this trial and Dr Brock proposed that these patients should be treated within a second trial with wider eligibility criteria. The antibody used in these trials can only be produced in large batches and was commissioned by the International Society of Paediatric Oncology European Neuroblastoma group, which is the European sponsor of the trial. In order to ensure that this second proposed trial obtained wider support from Dr Brock' s European research partners, the department made the commitment to fund the costs of the production of a second batch of antibody in April 2010.
	At the time, Dr Brock was confident that the second trial would be opened very quickly in this country. While preparations were being made for the second trial to open here, it was first piloted by her research collaborators in Germany. This resulted in requests for some children from the UK to travel to Germany for this treatment.
	Primary care trusts (PCTs) have been provided with advice about the treatment and directed to Dr Brock with queries about individual treatments. However, treatment funding decisions are for local PCTs. From April 2013, commissioning of treatment for neuroblastoma patients will be for the NHS Commissioning Board.
	This second trial is now available in this country and the first child will receive treatment in November 2012.
	These are research trials, and whether the treatment should become the widely accepted treatment for high-risk neuroblastoma patients will be subject to peer review, the evaluation of trial data by both the Food and Drug Administration and the European Medicines Agency, and licensing of the treatment.

Health: Controlled Trials

The Countess of Mar: To ask Her Majesty's Government whether the refusal by researchers to publish trial data on recovery rates and positive outcome rates specified in their application for grant funding provided by the Department of Health, the Medical Research Council, the Scottish Office and the Department for Work and Pensions for "Comparison of adaptive pacing therapy, cognitive behaviour therapy, graded exercise therapy, and specialist medical care for chronic fatigue syndrome (PACE): a randomised trial" contravenes the agreement the researchers entered into when the award was made.

Lord Marland: The PACE trial: A Randomised Controlled Trial of CBT, graded exercise, adaptive pacing and usual medical care for the chronic fatigue syndrome, was funded by a Medical Research Council (MRC) grant to Queen Mary, University of London.
	While the MRC strongly encourages the publication and dissemination of the findings of all MRC-funded research it does not require the publication of underlying research data. As an MRC grant, the study was subject to the RCUK (Research Council UK) and MRC terms and conditions; no additional requirements around publication were specified by the other funders of the study.
	The findings of the PACE study have been reported in The Lancet, in March 2011 (published online in February 2011) and in PLOS ONE in August 2012. These papers included the results of analyses of positive outcome rates.
	The MRC is aware that Queen Mary University London received a request under the Freedom of Information Act relating to data on recovery rates and positive outcome rates which relates to an analysis initially planned by the investigators in the original protocol for the study and which was published in 2007. It is understood that the request was declined by the university as this originally planned analysis was superseded and therefore not undertaken during the study.

Health: Hinchingbrooke Hospital

Lord Hunt of Kings Heath: To ask Her Majesty's Government why bidders were permitted to risk-adjust their own proposals in the assessment of the bids to run Hinchingbrooke Hospital.
	To ask Her Majesty's Government how they ensured that like-for-like comparisons were made of bids to run Hinchingbrooke Hospital, given that bidders were permitted to risk-adjust their own proposals.
	To ask Her Majesty's Government how the success or otherwise of the franchising of Hinchingbrooke Hospital will be judged.
	To ask Her Majesty's Government whether the successful bidder for the franchise to run Hinchingbrooke Hospital will be required to repay the cumulative debt.

Earl Howe: The appointment of an organisation to manage Hinchingbrooke Health Care NHS Trust was a local process led by the strategic health authority, NHS East of England, now part of NHS Midlands and East. The noble Lord may therefore wish to contact NHS Midlands and East for the requested information.

Health: Nurses

Lord Dykes: To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the estimate by the Royal College of Nursing that 60,000 front-line staff posts may be lost in the National Health Service.

Earl Howe: We do not recognise the figure of 60,000 staff posts being lost as correct, based on evidence available to the department.
	Professionally qualified clinical staff has increased by over 4,400 since May 2010. Changes to the size and shape of the workforce are the responsibility of local employers and are not to be determined centrally. Local healthcare organisations, with their knowledge of the patients that they serve, are best placed to plan and deliver a workforce appropriate to the needs of their patients.
	When significant changes to the National Health Service workforce are planned, local healthcare organisations must provide assurance that the safety and quality of patient care is maintained or improved. The process should include clinical involvement, leadership and sign off. Medical and nursing directors must be involved and agree any major changes to the way in which a service is delivered locally.
	Where there do need to be changes to the workforce locally, we would expect organisations to put in place comprehensive programmes of support and retraining to enable front-line staff to make the transition to other roles.

Health: Obesity

The Earl of Listowel: To ask Her Majesty's Government what is their assessment of the link between lone parent families and childhood obesity.
	To ask Her Majesty's Government whether perinatal parenting support forms part of their childhood obesity strategy.

Earl Howe: No assessment has been made of the link between lone parent families and childhood obesity.
	The Government have published Healthy Lives, Healthy People: A Call to Action on Obesityin England, which sets out how obesity among children and adults will be tackled in the new public health and National Health Service systems, and the role of key partners.
	The Government's approach recognises the importance of supporting parents. This is reflected in a number of initiatives including Start4Life, the Healthy Child Programme and the NHS Information Service for Parents, which include information and advice about a healthy diet and healthy weight, and by increasing the number of health visitors.
	A copy of the "Call to action" has already been placed in the Library.

Horses

Lord Higgins: To ask Her Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answer by Lord De Mauley on 8 November (WA 233), what was the outcome of the meeting between the Chief Veterinary Officers of the United Kingdom, France and the Republic of Ireland on 19 November reviewing the current arrangements regarding the tripartite agreement between the three countries on the movement of horses in the light of the risk of equine diseases being imported into the United Kingdom.

Lord De Mauley: The meeting agreed that the tripartite agreement (TPA) continues to represent an important and justified derogation from the normal EU rules for the intra-Community movement of equidae.
	The meeting considered a proposal from the CB equine sector to more closely define the types of horse movements that should be covered by the TPA. Having sought the views of their own stakeholders, the French and Irish delegations did not feel able to support this proposal. This was in part due to concerns that the proposal was too restrictive and prevented the inclusion of all horses with recognised high health status.
	However, our partners in the TPA did recognise the concerns that prompted our request to review the current agreement. We have secured an agreement to continue to work with France and Ireland to develop an alternative solution. Greater emphasis will be placed on linking the TPA to existing industry initiatives, such as codes of practice which help manage disease risk.
	The proactive involvement of equine sector organisations in seeking improvements to the TPA has been extremely helpful and is most welcome. Defra will report the outcome of the meeting to stakeholder groups and seek their ideas and advice on how best to continue with this work.

Housing Act 2004

Lord Greaves: To ask Her Majesty's Government what actions they have taken or are taking to review the effectiveness of selective licensing areas established under the Housing Act 2004; and what advice they have given to local authorities on their establishment.

Baroness Hanham: In January 2010, the department published an evaluation of the impact of HMO licensing and selective licensing and guidance for local authorities on the licensing and management provisions in Parts 2, 3 and 4 of the Housing Act 2004, including selective licensing.
	The Evaluation of the Impact of HMO Licensing and Selective Licensing can be found at:
	http://webarchive.nationalarchives.gov.uk/20120919132719/http://www.communities.gov.uk/docurnents/housing/pdf/144643 8.pdf
	A guide to the licensing and management provisions in Parts 2, 3 and 4 of the Housing Act 2004 can be found at: https://www.gov.uk/govemment/publications/ licensing-and-management-provisions-in-the-housing-act-2004-draft-guidance.

Immigration

Baroness Smith of Basildon: To ask Her Majesty's Government whether the number of outstanding asylum and immigration cases increased in the three months to the end of June 2012; if so, by how much; and what assessment they have made of any increase.

Lord Taylor of Holbeach: The data requested are not held in a format compatible with National Statistics protocols.
	Although the UK Border Agency does not publish data on the immigration work in progress caseload, it does publish the asylum work in progress caseload on an annual basis. The latest figures are available on the UK Border Agency website: http://www.ukba.homeoffice. gov.uk/sitecontent/documents/aboutus/further-key-data/.
	The Home Office publishes extensive data on asylum and immigration applications and an annual and quarterly basis. The latest figures are available from the Library of the House and from the Home Office Research Development and Statistics website: http://www.home office.gov.uk/publications/science-research-statistics/research-.statistics/immigration-asylum-research/immigration-q2-2012/

Israel and Palestine

Baroness Tonge: To ask Her Majesty's Government what representations they have made to the Government of Israel about the destruction of olive trees by settlers flooding Palestinian farms with sewage.

Baroness Warsi: Our ambassador to Israel raised the issue of settler violence during the olive harvest with the Israeli negotiator on the Middle East Peace Process, Isaac Molho, on 13 November. We note the particular sensitivities around olive trees given their status as a national symbol and the sole source of income for many Palestinian farmers.

Libya

Lord Laird: To ask Her Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answer by Baroness Warsi on 5 November (WA 180), whether they, as opposed to the Government of Libya, know which group carried out the attack on Sir Dominic Asquith; whether they regard the attack as a terrorist one; and whether they have determined any link with the attacks which destroyed British war graves in Benghazi.

Baroness Warsi: We are aware of a number of groups within Libya who have the capacity to carry out a terrorist attack such as the one on our former Ambassador, Sir Dominic Asquith, in Benghazi on 11 June. However, it is a long-standing government policy not to comment on intelligence matters relating to national security.
	The Government are not currently aware that there is any link between this attack and the earlier vandalism of the Commonwealth War Graves cemetery in Benghazi, but this was one of a number of incidents in Benghazi directed against targets associated with the international community. Our travel advice, therefore, advises against all travel to Benghazi.

National Parks

Lord Knight of Weymouth: To ask Her Majesty's Government what funding has been or will be allocated to the Northumberland National Park by the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs for each of the five years from 2010.

Lord De Mauley: Defra has allocated the following funding to the Northumberland National Park from 2010-11 to 2012-13:
	
		
			 2010-11 2011-12 2012-13 
			 £3,311,334 £3,133,337 £2,955,341 
		
	
	Funding for the two years 2013-14 and 2014-15 has not been confirmed. Indicative figures based on the current Comprehensive Spending Review projections are:
	
		
			 2013-14 2014-15 
			 £2,777,344 £2,599,347

NHS Commissioning Board

Lord Hunt of Kings Heath: To ask Her Majesty's Government how the objectives in the Mandate from the Government to the NHS Commissioning Board can be achieved in the next two financial years, given constraints on NHS spending.

Earl Howe: The Government have committed that health spending will rise in real terms in each year of this Parliament. The funding provided to the National Health Service Commissioning Board (NHSCB) for 2013-14 also represents real terms growth in recurrent funding against a comparable baseline for 2012-13. The mandate to the NHSCB sets high level objectives, rather than specific targets, and it will be the NHSCB's responsibility to determine how best it can achieve its objectives and its other responsibilities within its available budget. As the mandate sets out in a specific objective, this will require good financial management and unprecedented improvements in value for money, in line with delivery of the quality, innovation, productivity and prevention programme.

NHS Commissioning Board: Revenue

Lord Warner: To ask Her Majesty's Government whether the NHS Commissioning Board's revenue budget of £95,623 million for 2013-14 is at 2012-13 prices or on some other basis; and what the equivalent figure is for 2012-13, at constant prices, for the same range of services as that set out in the board's new mandate.

Earl Howe: The National Health Service Commissioning Board's total revenue resource limit of £95,623 million in 2013-14 is in 2013-14 prices. The comparable figure for 2012-13 is £93,649 million.
	The Government's commitment to increase health spending in real terms in each year of the Parliament is based upon the recurrent delegated expenditure limit, excluding depreciation and impairments. The National Health Service Commissioning Board's recurrent revenue funding, excluding depreciation and impairments and ring-fenced funding for public health, totals £91,788 million in 2013-14, which represents a 0.1% increase in real terms (2.6% in cash terms) against the comparable baseline of £89,470 million in 2012-13.

NHS: Clinical Commissioning Groups

Lord Warner: To ask Her Majesty's Government how the 2013-14 Commissioning Outcomes Framework will be used to monitor and assess the performance of clinical commissioning groups in relation to end-of-life care.
	To ask Her Majesty's Government when the 2013-14 Commissioning Outcomes Framework will be published.

Earl Howe: It is for the NHS Commissioning Board to make decisions on how it will hold clinical commissioning groups to account for their performance and they will be publishing details in due course.

Questions for Written Answer

Lord Jopling: To ask the Leader of the House whether guidance has been given to Government departments that answers to Questions for Written Answer made after more than 10 working days should be accompanied by a reason for the delay; and, if not, whether he will issue guidance to that effect.

Lord Strathclyde: No such guidance has been given. I do not intend to issue guidance to that effect, as I expect Ministers to use their discretion in deciding when and how to offer an explanation for a delay. Where a Minister regularly interacts with the Peer who tabled the question, for example, informal channels may prove more appropriate.

Railways: Network Rail

Lord Patten: To ask Her Majesty's Government to whom the chairman and Board of Network Rail are accountable.

Earl Attlee: Network Rail is a private sector, not-for-dividend company limited by guarantee, whose activities are governed by the regulatory regime provided by the Railways Act 1993 as amended. Its chairman and board are accountable to around 50 members drawn from the general public, with the Secretary of State for Transport as a special member.

Railways: South West Trains

Lord Patten: To ask Her Majesty's Government what is their assessment of the current relationship between Network Rail and South West Trains regarding the provision of facilities for railway stations in the region.

Earl Attlee: The relationship between South West Trains (SWT) and Network Rail (NR) regarding the provision of facilities at railway stations is governed by their responsibilities as set out in their station access agreements for each individual station. SWT and NR entered into a deep alliance on 29 April 2012 bringing closer and more efficient working between the two parties. An example of the benefits being delivered is that Waterloo Station is now managed by one station manager responsible for all station activity.
	Within the alliance, both entities remain accountable for their contractual responsibilities.

Railways: Stations

Lord Patten: To ask Her Majesty's Government whether there are minimum standards for the shelter to be provided on railway stations in England for passengers.

Earl Attlee: There are no minimum standards for the provision of shelters on railway stations.

Retail: Unsafe Products

Baroness Tonge: To ask Her Majesty's Government what information they hold on enforcement actions carried out by local trading standards officers to remove potentially dangerous electrical appliances from the market place.

Lord Marland: The department only holds information on the formal enforcement actions taken by Trading Standards which are required to be notified to the European Commission by the Union legislation under its safeguard action provision or by the RAPEX (Rapid Exchange of Information on unsafe products) mechanism.
	Trading Standards Services are not required to report to the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills (BIS) on any other enforcement actions they take but BIS officials do routinely become aware of actions through regular liaison with Trading Standards.

Retail: Unsafe Products

Baroness Tonge: To ask Her Majesty's Government what liaison there is between the UK Border Agency and the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills to ensure that potentially dangerous electrical appliances are seized before they enter the United Kingdom market.

Lord Marland: The department liaises closely with the Home Office's Border Force and with Her Majesty's Revenue and Customs (HMRC) over the issue of unsafe products imported into the UK. The Department for Business, Innovation and Skills (BIS) officials host and chair a subgroup of the UK Market Surveillance Co-ordination Committee on which both organisations sit together with officials of various market surveillance authorities including Trading Standards who have responsibility for intercepting unsafe consumer electrical products. This subgroup oversees co-operation and prioritisation of product safety import surveillance activities.

Schools: Boxing

Lord Pendry: To ask Her Majesty's Government what plans they have to encourage boxing in schools.

Lord Hill of Oareford: Boxing is not a compulsory part of the national curriculum and there are no plans to make it so. It is for schools to decide what extracurricular sports and games they provide and they are free to provide boxing for their pupils if they wish.
	We are currently reviewing the national curriculum, and will be consulting on new programmes of study in the new year. The draft programme of study for PE will be slimmer and will place greater emphasis than the current national curriculum on the provision of competitive sport.

Schools: Physical Education

Lord Pendry: To ask Her Majesty's Government what steps they are taking to increase the number of physical education teachers in schools.

Lord Hill of Oareford: The Government believe that individual schools are best placed to make decisions about how many teachers to employ in each subject specialism.
	The recruitment of trainee PE teachers to initial teacher training (ITT) is strong. From 1994-95 to 2011-12, the most recent year for which data is available, providers of ITT recruited enough trainees to meet the demand from schools for new teachers. To attract even more high quality graduates to train as PE teachers, from the 2012-13 academic year we have offered training bursaries of up to £9,000.

Syria

Lord Stoddart of Swindon: To ask Her Majesty's Government whether the Prime Minister consulted the Cabinet before proposing that the arms embargo on Syria should be lifted.

Lord Strathclyde: I refer the noble Lord to the Statement made in the other place by the Foreign Secretary on Tuesday 20 November (Official Report, col. 449).

Universal Credit

Lord Touhig: To ask Her Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answer by Lord Freud on 19 November (WA 330), how the universal credit interface enabling claimants to declare earnings to the Department for Work and Pensions will operate.

Lord Freud: The universal credit design will allow claimants to provide earnings details via a self-reporting tool initially by telephone and in due course on line.

Universal Credit

Lord Touhig: To ask Her Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answer by Lord Freud on 19 November (WA 330) stating that the department spent £103 million on the universal credit information technology project in 2011-12, what was their estimate of the cost for that period; whether the estimates given for 2012-13, 2013-14 and 2014-15 relate to information technology costs or total costs; and, if those are total costs, what are their estimates of information technology costs for those periods.

Lord Freud: The estimate of the total cost for the period 2011-12 was £105 million.
	The estimates provided for 2012-13, 2013-14 and 2014-15 in my previous Written Answer relate to the overall costs. The current estimates for the information technology investment costs for these periods is as follows:
	2012-13-£257 million;
	2013-14-£219 million; and
	2014-15-£115 million.